Waterless urinals!

As the "Conserve water, save life" movement gains momentum, the first innovation made in this direction by sanitaryware industry is Waterless Urinals. Invented by BVG-Falcon Waterfree Technologies of USA, waterless urinals have arrived in India and will soon take over the world scene as each such urinal is capable of saving 1.5 lakh litres of water every year.

The biggest advantage of waterless urinals is that these can be installed at places where there is no water available to keep a urinal running. Installation of these urinals may also help in maintaining better hygienic conditions and our country may get rid of the stigma of frequent roadside urination against the walls by the people.

Urinals generally provided at roadsides or public places need water for manual or automatic flushing at regular intervals. Otherwise, after a few days, the stink becomes unbearable. Waterless urinals need no such flushing. Their working is dependent on a "cartridge" installed at the base of the urinal. The cartridge contains a sealant liquid that forms a barrier between the open air and the urine as it makes its way through the cartridge, sealing all odours within the cartridge. A cartridge is able to collect the uric sediment while the remaining urine flows to the drainage pipe. So there is no requirement or wastage of water.

"You don’t need water to transport water" is the philosophy behind waterless urinals. Urine contains 96 per cent water and travels through the cartridge to the drain pipe. Specific gravity of the sealant liquid is less than that of water. That’s why it allows the urine to flow through it. A cartridge is suitable for 7000 uses which means it needs to be replaced two to four times a year depending upon the daily use. A urinal used for 175 times a day is said to be under heavy use. Such a urinal will need cartridge replacement after 1.5 months or so. After 7000 to 8000 uses, the flow of urine into the cartridge slows down. This is an indication that the cartridge needs to be replaced now. The cartridge gets locked in the seat and there can’t be any leakage.

The sealant as well as the cartridge are biodegradable. The cartridge is made of recyclable ABS plastic and can safely be disposed off in the landfill. Top test houses of US, Germany, UK, Singapore and New Zealand have tested the cartridges and the sealant and found them safe. University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) has compared the number of organisms (bacteria) present on the interior surfaces of traditional flush urinals and waterless urinals. The organism count per square inch has been found to be lesser in waterless urinals.

In India, cost of a waterless urinal comes to about Rs.10,000. There is almost zero installation cost as no plumbing for water supply is required. Just a connection to the drainpipe is enough to install a waterless urinal. Thus no time is lost in installing these urinals and inserting the cartridge. The sealant is to be filled only once. It does not evaporate. Nor does it dissolve with time or usage. These urinals are therefore ideally suited for airports, hotels, hospitals, theatres, multiplexes, schools, colleges and such public places.

No use of water or energy, no odour and no operating or installation costs make these urinals worth a consideration. The inlet pipe of these urinals is small thus preventing cigarette butts from blocking the urinal drain opening. Above all, no touching of handles, people are so reluctant to do at public places, is involved.